saying no

This morning we were supposed to board a plane and head to Colorado to visit my family.

Ryan suggested the idea and I came up with the plan.

He has a meeting in California over the weekend, so we figured that the kids and I could go to Denver and visit family.

We would go for a long weekend and attend the National Western Stock Show & Rodeo just like my sister and I used to when we were little.

We would visit with family and friends we haven’t seen in months.

I even printed out all the addresses for the Goodwill’s and other thrift stores in Denver.

It was all planned.

We were checked in for our flight.

And, it just didn’t feel right.

As much as I wanted to go all the signs were telling me that it just wasn’t right.

Lorelai has been sick, the weather was calling for freezing rain right when we were supposed to head to the airport, my body was losing the battle against the unending barrage of germs that it has been fighting off since the holidays, and I was not looking forward to flying through Seattle to get to Denver by myself with the two kiddos.

Yesterday afternoon I called my mom and let her know that we were planning to come, but would keep an eye on the weather…there might be flight delays.

Within minutes of getting off the phone Lorelai threw up in the kitchen. I’m pretty sure it was caused by a coughing fit, but that was the last sign I needed.

I cried, I thought, and I finally decided that we couldn’t go.

Ryan got on the phone with the airlines and canceled our tickets.

I called my mom and let her know we wouldn’t be coming.

The last two times I have visited Colorado I have been sick.

March 2010, we visited for Spring Break. While we had a wonderful time when we were there, I was fighting a cold the entire visit and ended up with walking pneumonia when we got back.

Thanksgiving 2011, I had Laryngitis the entire time. And, Lorelai was sick both times.

I decided to say no.

No to myself.

No to the plans I had made.

No to traveling alone with the kids while we are not feeling well.

I was afraid of disappointing everybody…my parents, my sister and brother-in-law, aunts and uncles, cousins, my niece, and Reece & Lorelai.

But, I had to say no.

home is…taking care of my family.

aloha

Last Friday we got on an airplane and flew to the middle of the Pacific Ocean.

We’re on Maui…one of my happiest places on earth.

Today is our last day here on the island.

It’s been a wonderful time despite many meltdowns at breakfast, lunch and dinner; a crazy sleep schedule; kiddos that don’t want to walk anywhere; and sniffles and coughs.

Lorelai has become a fish in the water.

Reece is making fast friends with kids of all ages at the pool.

They have both perfected the words ‘Aloha’ and ‘Mahalo’.

It is an awesome experience to share such a special place with my kiddos (and Ryan).

We ate breakfast at The Gazebo, lunch at Kimo’s, and dinner at Hula Grill.

We ate quickly melting ice cream under the Banyan tree, and looked for crabs on the rocks along Front Street.

We’ve also created new family experiences…staying on Kaanapali Beach at a hotel with a fabulous pool (and the only full service Starbucks on Kaanapali right below our ocean front room).

There are awesome kids activities…feeding the fish around the resort grounds, outdoor movies, treasure hunts, and shave ice.

We have relaxed by the pool everyday…going on “tours” of the big pool, waterfalls, and slides…swimming like mermaids and searching for pirate treasure at the Pirate Ship.

Last night we took the kids for a night swim and had the entire pool to ourselves.

Very different from all the other times I have been to Maui, but an amazing experience to share with my kids.

I can’t wait to come again and share even more with them…snorkeling, paddle boarding, boogie boarding, the North Shore, Haleakala, rainforests, waterfalls, Hana, Kapalua, Napili, Lanai, Molokini, Makena, and Little Beach.

Reece wanted to save a trip on the Sugar Cane Train for the next time we come.

I guess we have a reason to come back…

home is…island magic.

fun with a…

{capital F}

That’s what my youngest cousin had to say about our extended family’s trip to northern Idaho together.

I think Reece would agree.

Thanks to my other cousin, Greg, for inviting us all to celebrate with them!

It was definitely “fun with a capital f”!

Still going through the photos…I have them edited down to 989.

Post will be up next week.

Until then, a little FUN from our week back home…

photos from {m}iphone

{definitley}

home is…FUN!

{lake pend oreille} celebrating greg and natalie

It’s the Monday after returning from a week long vacation that was amazing.

We celebrated my cousin Greg and his beautiful new wife, Natalie.

We reunited with first and second cousins, aunts and uncles, grandparents, parents, and siblings.

It was magical.

I won’t recap everything in words as I believe that the photos will speak for themselves.

The first night we arrived was the rehearsal dinner in downtown Sandpoint…

Cousins.

Siblings.

The following afternoon was the wedding on the shores of Lake Pend Oreille…

Cousins, aunts, uncles, siblings, grandparents.

More to come…

home is…celebrating family.

i do’s

My cousin is getting married today on the shore of a beautiful northern Idaho lake.

It’s going to be an amazing celebration.

Reece and Lorelai are in the wedding…ring bearer and flower girl.

They rehearsed yesterday afternoon…

After the wedding festivities we get to stay here and play for a few more days.

It’s going to be an amazing vacation.

home is…getting away from home.

 

 

it was a good day

Yesterday at 7am, as my post went live, I heard a meow outside in our backyard.

I listened again, carefully, because I had been hearing imaginary meows for almost 2 days.

Sure enough, it was a loud meow…

I ran downstairs and looked out the back door.

I was Hobbes!

He was covered in pine needles and cobwebs, but nothing worse.

He was purring and so happy to see the kids and me.

Both of the kids were happy he was home.

I fed him, gave him his insulin, and made sure that he was inside as we left for school.

On our return from school, the kids got on bikes and we went through the neighborhood taking down our fliers.

After that we headed out to the backyard and found a big mouse in the middle of the extra dog bed we have been keeping outside.

Hobbes brought home a trophy from his adventure!

As an extra bonus, Lala asked me to put a ponytail in her hair…something she has refused to let me do forever!

And, Ryan surprised us by coming home for the night between travel from Montana to California!

home is…having the family back together again.

happy, happy…

SITS day to me!

What is a SITS day, you ask?

Well, here is the low down…

So, to make a long story short, I am the Featured Blogger for today.

I’ve got to admit, I’m a little nervous…

I really never thought *my* SITS day would come.

I just thought I would get involved to read other blogs and learn some things.

And, here it is.

Yay, me!

I have butterflies in my belly…

I started blogging as an outlet when I became a stay at home mom to my little guy in 2008.

I made the hardest decision in my life (and the best) to leave a job I loved and stay at home with him full-time when he was 9 months old (until that time I had worked part-time from home or bringing him to the office with me…yeah, I had an awesome boss).

I was starving to still be connected to the world of interior design.

So, I started a blog.

Then, I started another blog to keep family updated on our adventures in the Pacific Northwest.

Eventually, I decided to merge the two as I found that there was beginning to be some overlap.

Now, I write about the adventures of our family of four (we had our second…a little girl…in 2009), my projects, crafts, and anything else I feel like writing about.

I started blogging for myself, then eventually for my kids, and now I find it fun when I inspire others with what I write here.

In the end, I write about what makes our home a home because {of course} home is…what you make it!

Thanks for visiting me today.

Still have butterflies…

I hope you will take some time to look around and let me know what you think!

You can also find me on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram (homeisablog), and Pinterest.

home is…sharing my blog with the SITS community.

merry christmas…and a winner

When I look at our bulletin board full of holiday cards from friends and family all I can do is smile.

We are so blessed.

Earlier this week the little guy asked me to record him on my iPhone.

He was saying a prayer before he ate a snack (like he does at preschool).

The last thing he said was, “…thank you for this wonderful life and our family.”

He’s got it right.

Merry Christmas to you all!

**********

And, congratulations to Jen for winning the giveaway!

Jen, I will contact you and get your prize to you ASAP!

**********

I will be taking a few days off to spend time at home with my family.

May your days be merry and bright…

home is…there’s no place like home for the holidays.

fall, football, and friends

We enjoyed a fall weekend of football and friends.

On Friday we celebrated our 11 year anniversary by taking the kids to the local high school homecoming game. We met our neighbors there and the kids had a great time!

Saturday was filled with friends at our house to watch the Oregon vs Colorado game. There was a lot more fun going on outside than football watching going on inside.

Check back this week for the 1st giveaway on my blog!

Also, I hope to update you on the changes we made to our yard now that they are final…until we add more next spring!

Stay tuned…

home is…fall, my favorite season of all.

{colorado} day 5

Today we went to one of my happiest places on earth.

Vail.

From the time I was my children’s ages I spent a lot of time up in Vail…Spring, Summer, Fall and Winter. This continued throughout my 30 years in Colorado.

When I drive up the East side of Vail Pass it is like pure magic. And, when I drop over the West side into the Vail Valley it is like coming home. Everything about it is awesome…the views, the smell, the sounds.

I wanted to share this with my kids as soon as I could.

Today was the day.

It was a quick trip into the village. Across the covered bridge. Up Bridge Street to The Toy Shoppe. The same toy store, with the same Hello Kitty toys, keychains, and vanity license plates for kids bikes as 30 years ago.

We made it up to peek at the Vista Bahn and watch a couple of skiers come down the mountain. Then the kids were ready to move on.

And move on we did.

We drove up to the Cordillera where my aunt and uncle have a beautiful home. We had lunch with my aunt and uncle, cousin and his fiance.

We played, talked, reminisced about fun had in Vail together, and just enjoyed eachothers company.

Everybody was happy. It was magical.

Thank you to my mom for driving us up and back.

Thank you to my aunt, uncle, cousin and fiance for entertaining my kids.

Thank you to my wonderful kiddos for sharing one of my happiest places on earth with me.

home is…going to a happy place.